Note: This is a seattlepi.com reader blog. It is not written or edited by the P-I. The authors are solely responsible for content. E-mail us at newmedia@seattlepi.com if you consider a post inappropriate.

It has been over 40 years since the legendary chef Alice Waters opened Chez Panisse
in Berkeley, California. While the restaurant became known for its
single price-fixe menu it also set the stage for the Eat Local movement
which would heavily i…

The Wild Swans
recounts the story of a princess who sets out to rescue her eleven
brothers who have been turned into swans by their wicked stepmother and
forced to fly away. The tale was first published in 1838 in the
compilation Fairy Tales Told for Children. New Collection by Hans Christian Anderson.

An amazing new wordless version of the famous tale is now available.
Illustrated by noted toy designer Thomas Aquinas Maguire and published
by Simply Read Books. Maguire has transformed the literary tale into a
unfolding visual feast.

Bound
accordion style the book extends to over 60 feet! The illustrations
were drawn in 8-feet-long sections and were then married in Photoshop.
The book was artfully designed by Robin Mitchell-Cranfield.

It has been a little over 5 years since I got a crazy idea to start blogging about books and their place in our world. The pace of change in the book universe has not slowed one bit since my first post and neither have the options for sharing and responding to the plethora of information about books that permeate the internet. While the pace of blogging has slowed somewhat recently it is not for lack of engagement nor interest – the availability of new social media tools have allowed for new ways of sharing the cool stuff I come across. If you miss the frequency I would encourage you to visit Book Patrol at any of these following venues:TwitterPinterest Tumblr

You will quickly realize that there is still quite a lot going on 🙂 and I encourage you to keep up with Book Patrol on any or all of these venues. And stay tuned for we have some exciting things in the works for 2012.

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The Bookseller Manifesto Part I: I am a Bookseller – New Definitions for a Shifting Landscape

There are not many industries in the last 10 years that have undergone the volcanic eruptions that the world of bookselling has.

The
world of the antiquarian and used bookseller has been turned upside
down. A dinosaur of a trade that pretty much moved at turtle speed for
most of the 20th century has had it shell torn off in the last decade.

The
new bookseller has feared worse. It has become almost impossible to
sell new books. Though as a whole the new book world was not as set in
its ways as the bookseller in the resale market (I will use this term to
refer to the non-new book bookseller). The commonality of product
inherent in the new book world has made it the most susceptible to the
emerging technologies. There are no surprises – you can schlep to the
bookstore to pick up book “A” or you can go online and get book “A”
cheaper and quicker. Convenience does a lot of damage to loyalty

For
the resale market it is the elimination of any barrier to entry that
poses the greatest threat. The only criteria to becoming a ‘bookseller’
today is that you have a valid credit card and you can find a username that
hasn’t been taken yet. That is it- no apprenticeship, no schooling, no
experience, no knowledge of the trade.

Yet with all this upheaval there has been no change in the definition or label of what or who a bookseller is.

There
are a couple of prominent issues currently in play with the ABAA
(Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America) that illuminate the
need to broaden the lexicon.…

The
first is the debate over whether to allow auction houses or persons who
primarily sell books via auction to become members of the ABAA.
Personally I feel that they shouldn’t be allowed, the admission
requirements are already too lax and allowing additional auctioneers in
will not help things.…

The
second is the role the ABAA plays in the appraisal market and its
relationship with the IRS. A tax expert who is a member of the ABAA
recently sent a letter to the IRS on this subject and I wanted to share a
snippet pertaining to our topic:…

Antiquarian
is a vague term that implies antiquities but is commonly employed to
describe collectible books of all sorts regardless of age

Let’s just say, like the generic term bookseller, the term antiquarian is well antiquarian and needs to be revised.

book·sell·er : one that sells books; especially : the proprietor of a bookstore…

Of
course, on the most basic level, one who sells books is a bookseller.
Unfortunately, the bookselling landscape has been so radically altered
that the term bookseller has become void of any significant or specific
meaning.…

Part I of Book Patrol’s Bookseller Manifesto for the 21st
Century will introduce new terminology for the bookselling world. The
bulk of my experience is in the resale market so these terms will be
most suited for that facet of the industry. I look forward to feedback
from colleagues in the new book world on suggestions for new terms that
apply to their endeavors and to my colleagues in the antiquarian world
for feedback. …

Bookseller: proprietor
of a bookstore (or office) which holds regular hours and is open to the
public. The bookseller has a passion for the material he/she offers and
has an appreciation of the book as an object. The selling of books is
his/her livelihood.…

Beta Bookseller: The
beta bookseller has a passion for the material he/she offers and has an
appreciation of the book as an object though bookselling is not their
primary livelihood. In many instances the Beta Bookseller is a Book
Collector.…

Pseudo Bookseller: A Book Collector with a tax id number with no intent to sell books at the time of purchase.…

ISBN Seller
(I Sell Books by Numbers Bookseller): The ISBN seller sees the book as a
commodity. Some passion for the book might exist. They are limited to
selling books produced after 1967 when the ISBN method of book
identification was created. Scout Pal is a primary technology for this
seller. …

Book Barons (otherwise
known as megalisters): Book Barons see books as commodities. They do
not own the books they sell nor do they have the physical capabilities
to house the books they offer. No passion simply greed. Covertly
supported by book resale marketplaces.…

Part II ofBook
Patrol’s Bookseller Manifesto will deal with the fractured world of
bookselling and offer some concrete ways booksellers can unite and
succeed.…

Note: This is a seattlepi.com reader blog. It is not written or edited by the P-I. The authors are solely responsible for content. E-mail us at newmedia@seattlepi.com if you consider a post inappropriate.